Monday, February 23, 2015

If you didn't know I turned twenty today and man it is weird
haha, I beat teen pregnancy! (As my investigators said).

Today I have been thinking a lot about the last 20 years of my
life and how old my parents and brother and sisters are haha. In the last ten
years of my life… I went through puberty, high school, friends, relationships,
states, phases, I’ve made mistakes… a lot of them, I have had success… (here
and there) and I have grown in more ways than I can comprehend. And looking back
on these last years, sure I have some things that I guess I regret here and
there but truly over all I wouldn't really want to change a thing. If I hadn't
done the things I have done I would not be “the me” I am today, I would not
have the conviction that the gospel is restored that I have. I would not act
the way I do. Sure bad things have happened all throughout my life but really
the past is history. We learn and we move on and start anew every day to become
better and stronger.

This is going to be a pretty groovy couple of years coming up I
think. Some even bigger decisions are going to be made. Where I go to school,
my future career, my spouse, and if I can keep the same tone of the gospel I
have on my mission. And though all these things are happening. I am not afraid.
I will not fear because I know the Lord will take care of it.

Today was also pretty solid because Mark and Heather, my
investigators, went in this morning to have their baby, and they called us and
asked us to come give Heather a blessing beforehand at 6 A.M. Feb 23rd 2015, so
my day started off pretty sweet, having a baby of one of your best friends born
on your b-day is awesome. And after we gave her the blessing she sighed and
smiled and said she felt so much better. Then I hugged Mark for a long time and
while I did that I thought about how scared he was when we walked in the room. In
a few short hours he was going to be a father. Then after the blessing and
after the hug, things just seemed to melt away and peace came into the room. It
was incredible. I am not ready to have a kid right now I have realized, that is
why I am on a mission and not home married to my future wife. I still have a
couple steps I need to make to be the father I need to be. So with the years to
come, do not fear for the Lord is your Shepard…

I come home this year and it is weird, kinda sad, but kinda
happy, don't worry about me out there cause I am doing good:). I am happy to
give on my birthday for the Lord and for my friends, family and future family.

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

So Valentine’s Day sucks haha, just kidding but only kinda. The
whole day was us going out and talking and trying to teach people, but they
were all too busy doing things with their girlfriends and wives, and as a
missionary we can only be with a dude, so people were giving us weird looks all
day. But it happens, seasons of love are good. It’s good that they are
strengthening their relationships on that day and coming closer as a couple... while I am chasing down a dog that was in the middle of the street that jumped
out of a guy’s pickup and he had a bad back so he asked me to pick it up for
him..... What a day haha.

But ya, I said this week I was going to talk a little bit about
drawing lines in the sand. We were visiting with a less active member of our
congregation and we were talking about drawing lines in the sand and being the
person you need to be. In life tons of crap will come our way and tons of
decisions we will have to make that are important will just show up out of nowhere
without any warning.

For Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, they had a similar story,
they were faced with the challenge of king Nebuchadnezzar. He had made a golden
image and he gathered everyone together and told them when the bell rings or
when the music plays, bow down and worship this image I made and if you don't,
I will cast you into the furnace. I don't think it is a coincidence that he
gathered everyone together, a lot of times in our life we are faced with peer
pressure and if everyone else is doing it, it’s a lot easier to justify it and
do it as well. So literally everyone that was gathered together, bowed down and
worshiped the idol.

I’m guessing 50 percent only did it because everyone else was. Everyone
except the crew of 3, the dream team, they stood up for what they believed in
and said no. And they said that they “care not for to answer the king”. So they
were bold, they didn't care what he would do to them because they already made
up their minds that they would only serve and worship their God. The only God. So
the king gets the furnace super-hot and throws them in right. And while they
are in there, Christ is with them and saves them. I like that it says “the
image of the 4th being was as the Son of God” because there is no way that an evil
king hundreds of years before Christ was even born could know what Christ
looked like. So I believe that when we see Christ we will know Him…

Anyway, they were saved
and made rulers and kings. So they stood up for what was right and were
rewarded. I challenge everyone out there to metaphorically or literally think
about some major things in life and find out where you stand. I know that as
you do this when the time comes you will know what to do.

I love you all and I am sorry it was short this week. I have to
go, be safe.

Monday, February 9, 2015

I like to ride my bicycle, I like to ride my bike, I like to
ride my bicycle, I like to ride it where I like…if you couldn't tell I am back
on a bike haha. Some other missionaries in Sonora’s car broke down and they are
in a small town so they need a car.... apparently .... but they asked if anyone
in the city would offer up theirs, so we said we could. And the day we did that
the weather turned from cold to 75 and sunny for a week now so we are blessed
haha. Only downside is that we have to bike a few miles to get to the edge of
our area, but no big deal.

This week was rad. I learned a lot about myself this week. I
think I have grown more in a different way than I ever have before :) So a
while back we were teaching a less active member in our ward who was not
willing to come back to church because of anti-Mormon literature, which if you didn't know, more
anti-Mormon literature is printed about an hour away from me than anywhere else
in the world. So if you know me you know I am a passionate guy when I know
something. And if I come to the knowledge of it I will defend it till the day I
die. So this conversation got a little bit intense we will say nonetheless and
I blew the spirit all over him haha. Then we left and we did not stop by for a
while after that. A couple months to be in fact. And I was feeling pretty weary
about the whole thing.

So we went back and they let us in the door. And instead of
coming with my passionate approach like I did last time, the spirit told me to just
love and I saw this man for who he truly is and we just loved him. Then he
really started opening up to us and it reminded me of the scripture in Doctrine
and Covenants 121: 43. It says something along the lines of you can only
chasten those whom you love and if you chasten someone, you have to show them
love immediately after.

I then applied this to my
family and future family to see how I could best help them. And I thought about
how me and my wife are going to get into fights and when we do, we always have
to say something positive after we do to make things right. In the scripture it
says how we must afterward show a greater love for them. And it is sometimes
hard for us to have a greater love for someone we just got mad at. I know that
with the little fights if you can get through it, it will only make you
stronger, and the love I have for this less active has grown so much now. I
also learned a lot about drawing lines in the sand which I will share more about
next week.

But I love you guys so
much. Be safe out there in this world. You are in my prayers and I am here for
you… and by the way the less active member came back to church this week. So
there are such things as happy endings haha.

Monday, February 2, 2015

This week was pretty rad, it’s like a whole new world here in
San Angelo with a new companion, it really does change everything the person
you are with haha. So I am seeing how important an "eternal
companion" is going to be haha.

Heard that the Patriots won the Super Bowl, haha everyone was
pretty intense about it down here, I seriously believe that Super Bowl Sunday is
the hardest day for missionary work in all of West Texas! Even If the two teams
playing are two teams that everyone here could care less about haha! It’s
awesome. So many people wanted to have us come by and watch it with them. I was
pretty sad I had to say no, but I completely think it is a direct blessing that
me being on a mission is the two years that the Seahawks make it to the Super Bowl.
So your welcome all of the Seahawks fans out there haha.

But this week we had a pretty powerful lesson with a guy
named Chris. A few years back he was in his house and a member of a rival gang
came to his window where he and his little 10 year old brother were sleeping. The
rival gang member shot through the window six times. In result hitting his
younger brother in the head and him in the arm. He then picked up his brother
and ran him to the hospital down the road. He said that no God would let that
happen. No God would let his little brother die like that. Answer me that
question Elder Christensen, answer me that question. No one has been able to
tell me the answer before....

I paused for a long while... it seems like it would be easy
to answer him, but for some reason the spirit was telling me I needed to say it
just right. I began to tell him about God’s love for all of his children. Even
the gunman who shot his brother. Then the conversation moved to God loves us so
much He will not interfere with our agency. We then began to teach him about
our purpose on earth and who we all truly are. Sons and daughters, Princes and Princesses to
the God of the most high. We read Alma chapter 60 with him. Then the
spirit told me to share with him something that I believe is too sacred and
personal to share with the world, but after our conversation concluded there
was silence for a long time. He then said, “thank you.......I can feel Him”.
We then hugged, we said our loves and then we didn't talk again. It was a
powerful experience. There is a God. I know him, I... have never felt him more
strongly than on that day. And I will spend the rest of my life trying to get
that feeling again. Sometimes God works through us in ways we don't understand,
but I plead with all of you to let Him lead your life. I promise you won’t
regret it.

I am blessed to be a missionary and I love being exactly where I
am. I love you all so much.